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Darcey Addo
Darcey Addo was a candidate for the District 3 seat on the Brevard Public Schools Board of Education in Florida. Addo was defeated in the by-district general election on November 8, 2016.
Biography
Addo has been teaching in Florida since 2002. As of July 30, 2016, she was in the process of completing her Ph.D. in leadership, policy, and change in education from Walden University. She also earned her M.A. in teacher leadership and urban education from the University of Central Florida and received her B.S. in English education from Western Connecticut State University. She is also national board certified (NBCT). Addo is the moderator of Opt Out Brevard and is involved with the Opt Out Florida Network.[1][2]
Elections
2016
- See also: Brevard Public Schools elections (2016)
Two of the five seats on the Brevard Public Schools Board of Education were up for by-district general election on November 8, 2016. Four candidates filed to run for the District 3 seat in the by-district primary election on August 30, 2016: newcomers Darcey Addo, Richard Charbonneau, Tina Descovich, and Larry Finch. Addo and Descovich advanced to the general election because no candidates received more than 50 percent of the primary vote, and Descovich won the seat. For the District 4 seat, incumbent Karen Henderson was joined in the primary election by three challengers: Dana DeSantis, Dean Paterakis, and Matt Susin. Henderson and Susin advanced from the primary election to the general election, and Susin successfully ousted the incumbent.[3][4]
Results
| Brevard Public Schools, District 3 General Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
 Tina Descovich |
59.38% | 32,279 |
| Darcey Addo | 40.62% | 22,078 |
| Total Votes (100) | 54,357 | |
| Source: Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, "2016 General Election Official Results," accessed November 30, 2016 | ||
| Brevard Public Schools, District 3 Primary Election, 4-year term, 2016 |
||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | Vote % | Votes |
| Tina Descovich |
48.78% | 9,152 |
| Darcey Addo |
20.72% | 3,888 |
| Larry Finch | 17.03% | 3,195 |
| Richard Charbonneau | 13.46% | 2,526 |
| Total Votes | 18,761 | |
| Source: Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, "2016 Primary Election, Official Results" accessed November 29, 2016 | ||
Funding
Addo reported $10,053.87 in contributions and $9,396.94 in expenditures to the Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, which left her with $429.53 on hand as of October 10, 2016.[5]
Campaign themes
Ballotpedia survey responses
Darcey Addo participated in Ballotpedia's 2016 survey of school board candidates. In response to the question "What do you hope to achieve if elected to the school board?" the candidate stated on July 31, 2016:
| “ | [6][7] | ” |
Ranking the issues
The candidate was asked to rank the following issues based on how they should be prioritized by the school board, with 1 being the most important and 7 being the least important. Each ranking could only be used once.
| Education policy |
|---|
 |
Click here to learn more about education policy in Florida. |
| Education on the ballot |
| Issue importance ranking | |
|---|---|
| Candidate's ranking | Issue |
| Balancing or maintaining the district's budget | |
| Improving relations with teachers | |
| Improving education for special needs students | |
| Closing the achievement gap | |
| Expanding arts education | |
| Improving post-secondary readiness | |
| Expanding school choice options | |
| “ | Many of these have equal priority in my mind, but unless the financial house is in order, we won’t have a successful school district, so that has to be the top priority. Teachers are the heartbeat of the district, so paying them well and providing them an opportunity to express their ideas, concerns, and without fear is essential – especially for annual contract teachers. Improving educational opportunities for special education students and closing the achievement gap (which is more appropriately referred to as an "opportunity gap") are equally important, along with expanding arts education and improving the post-secondary readiness of all students. Post-secondary readiness would naturally increase if we moved to less of a test-centered curriculum. In that we are already a district of choice with many options for students, I don’t see the need to expand these options. Rather, I support expanding corridor busing for all students.[7] | ” |
| —Darcey Addo (July 31, 2016) | ||
Positions on the issues
The candidate was asked to answer nine questions from Ballotpedia regarding significant issues in education and the school district. The questions are highlighted in blue and followed by the candidate's responses. Some questions provided multiple choices, which are noted after those questions. The candidate was also provided space to elaborate on their answers to the multiple choice questions.
| Should new charter schools be approved in your district? (Not all school boards are empowered to approve charter schools. In those cases, the candidate was directed to answer the question as if the school board were able to do so.) |
|---|
| No. We have several charter schools and, in that we are a choice district, I don't see the need to offer additional choices when we have not fully deployed the variety of options that we have to all students. |
| Which statement best describes the ideal relationship between the state government and the school board? The state should always defer to school board decisions, defer to school board decisions in most cases, be involved in the district routinely or only intervene in severe cases of misconduct or mismanagement. |
| The state should defer to school board decisions in most cases. |
| Are standardized tests an accurate metric of student achievement? |
| No. Standardized tests like the FSA are a measure of how a student performs in relation to his or her age group peers. The |
| What is your stance on the Common Core State Standards Initiative? |
| I do not support Common Core State Standards because of the developmental inappropriateness in the elementary grades, the movement away from full text in the secondary grades, and the fundamental ideological disagreement I have with those who seek to make a profit in public education. |
| How should the district handle underperforming teachers? Terminate their contract before any damage is done to students, offer additional training options, put them on a probationary period while they seek to improve or set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district? |
| Set up a mentorship program for the underperforming teacher with a more experienced teacher in the district. Teaching is both an art and science. Like any other profession, it takes time for a professional to hone the craft. A wise leadership approach will invest in human capital through mentorship programs (much like the Dale Hickman program) to give new and struggling teachers the opportunity to develop the skills necessary for effective teaching. |
| Should teachers receive merit pay? |
| No. I do not support merit pay/pay-for-performance quite simply because there is no academic, peer-reviewed research to support this faulty premise that teachers are motivated by this "carrot-stick" method of incentive. |
| Should the state give money to private schools through a voucher system or scholarship program? |
| No. Public tax dollars should not support private enterprise . |
| How should expulsion be used in the district? |
| Removing students from the learning environment is the worst case scenario. Expulsion should only be used when students make learning unsafe for those around them, or when offenses are so egregious that it is the only option. Even in those cases, the child is entitled to public education, so arrangements must be made to ensure that academic progress is made. |
| What's the most important factor for success in the classroom: student-teacher ratio, the curriculum, teachers, parent involvement or school administration? |
| Teachers |
Biographical information submission
Addo's answer to Ballotpedia's question "What is your political philosophy?" was as follows:
| “ | Politics have no place on our school board. We need to make sound, research-based decisions, weed out misspending, and make policies informed by those on the front-lines so we can benefit the most important stakeholders: our children and families. As the candidate who is neither party-affiliated nor supported by PACs or special interests, I am uniquely positioned to serve the best interest of our community. My experience, education, and history of well-informed public-education advocacy are evident. I’ve dedicated my career to doing what is best for children and intend to continue putting kids ahead of politics on the school board.[7] | ” |
| —Darcey Addo (July 30, 2016)[2] | ||
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Darcey Addo Brevard Public Schools. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Darcey Addo 2016 campaign website
- [www.DarceyAddo.com www.Facebook.com/DarceyForSchoolBoard Darcey Addo 2016 Facebook campaign page]
- Brevard County Public Schools
- Brevard County Elections Supervisor
Footnotes
- ↑ Darcey Addo for Brevard School Board, "About," accessed August 5, 2016
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 Ballotpedia's Biographical Information Submission Form, "Darcey Addo's responses," July 30, 2016
- ↑ Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, "2016 Candidates," accessed June 28, 2016
- ↑ Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, "2nd Unofficial Results," accessed November 16, 2016
- ↑ Brevard County Supervisor of Elections, "Candidate Contributions and Expenditures," accessed October 10, 2016
- ↑ Ballotpedia School Board Candidate Survey, 2016, "Darcey Addo's responses," July 31, 2016
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 7.2 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
| 2016 Brevard Public Schools Elections | |
| Election date: | Primary: August 30, 2016 General: November 8, 2016 |
| Candidates: | District 3: Darcey Addo • Richard Charbonneau • Tina Descovich • Larry Finch District 4: Incumbent, Karen Henderson • Dana DeSantis • Dean Paterakis • Matt Susin |
| Important information: | What was at stake? • Key deadlines • Additional elections on the ballot |
